


You Should Come Up For Coffee

by AbschaumNo1



Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: Fluff, Getting Together, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 13:48:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17788553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AbschaumNo1/pseuds/AbschaumNo1
Summary: Connor asks Leon to come along to dinner with Alex and Dylan. Realisations are had.





	You Should Come Up For Coffee

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Valentine's Day everyone!
> 
> So Connor talked about how close Dylan and Alex are and how they love each other on and off the ice and pinkmanite and I talked about how Connor sounded like ht was third--wheeling with them and things kind of happened from there.

Leon was surprised when Connor asked him to come along to dinner with Dylan and Alex.

“I don’t even know them that well,” Leon said. “I mean they’re your friends, I wouldn’t want to intrude.”

Connor fidgeted. “Promise me you won’t judge me?” he said.

“Okay?” Leon raised an eyebrow and Connor sighed.

“It’s… I love them, and Stromer is like my best friend, but…together they’re… they’re hard to bear on my own.”

Leon considered Connor for a moment, he was still fidgeting and there was definitely a bit of a blush on his face. And well, he gave Leon that pleading look of his, like a puppy dog or something, and Leon…Leon was weak for that. Not that he’d ever admit it to Connor, but as soon as he turned on the puppy eyes Leon was a goner and Connor could ask anything of him.

“Okay,” he said finally. “I’ll come along to your dinner with your friends.”

“Really?” Connor’s entire face lit up, and Leon had to do his best to keep it together and not hide his face in his hands. Being the one to put that look on Connor’s face never got old, but Leon was even less willing to tell him that than the puppy eye thing.

“Yeah sure.” Leon did his best impression of a nonchalant shrug. “Just tell me when and where.”

Connor smiled. “I’ll pick you up at seven then. Wear something nice.”

Leon nodded. He wasn’t quite sure what he had gotten himself into but he could do that much.

 

Leon raised an eyebrow at Connor when they entered the rather nice restaurant where they would meet Dylan and Alex.

“Fancy place to take your friends to for dinner,” he said.

“I’ll pay, don’t worry. They bullied me into this.” Connor rolled his eyes.

“I can pay for myself, you know?”

“I know. But you’re only here because I asked you to come along, so the least I can do is pay.”

Connor looked a bit nervous, Leon realised, but before he could say anything about it they had reached their table and so he simply filed the observation away for later.

 

Dinner itself was…weird. For once Dylan started grinning broadly as soon as he saw Leon and then the first word to come out of his mouth was “Congratulations!”

Leon shot Connor a confused look. Connor was beet red, and he was looking at Dylan, but Leon could see that he was giving him a pleading look.

Before Leon could think too much of it Alex put a quick stop to whatever was going on there and said, “It’s good to see you, Davo.”

They sat down and ordered and soon enough it was as if that first greeting had never happened. Or at least it would have been if Dylan didn’t keep making all these weird comments. Leon could feel Connor fidget next to him whenever it happened, and there was more than one moment when Leon got apologetic looks from him. When the fidgeting finally got a little too much for Leon, he moved his knee until it rested against Connor’s, who immediately stilled. Leon kept talking, but he could see from the corner of his eye that Connor kept shooting him glances. Neither of them moved away though, and while Connor didn’t seem any more relaxed he at least wasn’t moving around so much anymore.

He excused himself to go to the bathroom at some point, and when he stepped back out into the hallway Alex was there, trying not to look like he was waiting for him.

“Hey,” he said as soon as he saw Leon. “I just wanted to say I’m sorry if Dylan is a bit much. He’s just really excited, you know?”

Leon blinked. To say he was confused was probably an understatement. It was just dinner with friends, what was there to be excited about? Then again, it was possible that Alex was just referring to how Dylan was excited to get to play in Chicago now, and to be with Alex again. It was most likely that actually.

“It’s fine,” he said. “It’s not like Connor didn’t warn me.”

Alex looked relieved. “Good. I just wanted you to know that he’s not trying to make you uncomfortable- Or at least not more than it’s his due as Davo’s best friend.” He smiled and then he quickly disappeared into the bathroom, somehow leaving Leon even more confused than before.

 

He pondered it all through the rest of dinner and on the way home. It was weird. Connor’s friends seemed to think it was somehow significant that Leon had come along. And it had been a very nice restaurant to go to just to meet some friends. Almost romantic even. Leon turned in the passenger seat to look at Connor, focused on the streets, but already talking about hockey again. Leon knew he wouldn’t have to say much for a bit, and as he watched the street lights flicker across Connor’s face he thought about how if this was a movie, he would invite Connor up to his place for coffee or some shit and how they would both know that it wasn’t about coffee at all. And then he thought about how tonight wasn’t the first time he had thought that and… oh.

“What was that back there?” Leon asked softly when Connor stopped talking to take a breath.

Connor gave him a quick glance. “What was what?”

“Dinner,” Leon said. “With Dylan and Alex.”

“It was dinner with Stromer and Brinksy.” Connor was staring straight ahead at the street now, and Leon didn’t think he imagined his fingers tightening around the steering wheel.

“Was that really all it was? Because that was a very nice place to take your friends to dinner to.”

“I told you, Stromer bullied me into it.” Connor fidgeted a little in his seat now.

“Did he also bully you into buying me dinner and lunch every time we go out together? Or into coming to my place and paying for take-out? Or into making sure we go get food alone or that it’s the two of us driving to the rink together, even though you and Nursey live together?”

“Well…no,” Connor admitted after a moment of silence. “That was all me.”

Leon thought that over for a moment while Connor pulled into the parking garage of their building. He waited until Connor had parked before he said, 2So when Dylan congratulated us, he thought you had brought me along as what? A date? Your boyfriend?”

Connor looked like he was ready to bold, but he stayed rooted where he was, even though he couldn’t seem to meet Leon’s eyes.

“He may have misunderstood something when I told him I’d bring you along. And I may have failed to correct his assumptions.”

“So what do he and Alex know that you haven’t told me yet?”

“It’s nothing. It’s just a misunderstanding.”

“Come on, Con, talk to me. I promise I won’t hate you or laugh at you.”

Connor sighed and closed his eyes. When he opened them again he looked right at Leon.

“They know that I like you. Like really liked you. Not just as a friend,” he said. “And that’s why I keep paying for dinner or lunch, and why I always try for it to be just the two of us.”

“Ah,” Leon said.

Connor fidgeted again. “Look, we don’t have to talk about this again. I’ll get over it.”

“Is that what you want?”

“I mean, no. But I don’t expect you to feel the same.”

Leon smiled and shook his head. He reached out to cup Connor’s cheek. “Oh Connor,” he said. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?” Connor looked confused and Leon shook his head again. “I like you, too,” he clarified. “Why else did you think I was always up for spending time with you?”

“Oh,” Connor said.

Leon laughed fondly. “Yeah. Oh.”

“So you’re saying it would be okay if I kissed you?”

“More than okay actually.”

“Oh.” Connor said again.

Leon moved closer. “Come here,” he said, and Connor followed his lead. Leon reached out with his other hand so he could cup Connor’s face in both of his palms and then he closed the last bit of space between them and finally kissed him.

Connor’s lips were soft against his as he responded to the kiss. Nothing much, just a chase, beautiful thing. The angle wasn’t the best like this, but Leon didn’t mind. Not when he was finally getting what he wanted.

“You should come up to mine for coffee or something,” he said when they moved apart.

Connor laughed. “I will,” he said, before he leaned in to give Leon another quick kiss. “As often as you want me to.”


End file.
